Friday, June 20

Theater: The Heiress

Opens Friday: “The Heiress” is an old theatrical chestnut based on an even older novel … specifically the 1880 Henry James’ novel “Washington Square.” It’s a story of family dynamics and duty, the cost of perception and the price of choices. Director Bain Boehlke puts an eye-catching cast on the stage, including Ivy Award-winners Wendy Lehr and Kate Guentzel and Jeffrey Hatcher, the prolific local playwright who occasionally takes the stage. Through Aug. 10; Jungle Theatre, 2951 Lyndale Ave S., Mpls.; $43 – $25; 612-822-7063 or jungletheater.com.

— Dominic P. Papatola

R&B: John Legend

Friday: For his fourth album “Love in the Future,” Grammy favorite John Legend took on Kanye West as one of several producers and has since praised the results, telling one reporter: “The collaboration and the talent that we have on the album is better than we’ve ever had … Kanye’s leadership was great in helping to do that. I feel really good about it.” Rapper Rick Ross was a guest on the lead single, “Who Do We Think We Are,” but the song “All of Me” has turned out to be the disc’s biggest hit, topping 2 million paid downloads. Legend dedicated the piano ballad to his wife, model Christine Teigen, who also appears in the video. 8 p.m.; Mystic Lake Casino, 2400 Mystic Lake Blvd., Prior Lake; sold out; 952-496-6563 or mysticlake.com.

— Ross Raihala

Alt-country: The Old 97’s

Friday: Americana favorites the Old 97’s have been at it for more than 20 years now and managed to survive a major-label deal that went south and the solo career of lead singer Rhett Miller (who continues to make albums on the side). The band has spent recent years revisiting the past, via a deluxe reissue of 1997’s “Too Far to Care” and the release of some old collaborations with Waylon Jennings. They also just released a new studio album, “Most Messed Up,” their first for Dave Matthews’ ATO Records. It’s the band’s most rock-oriented effort to date, and has earned comparisons to the Rolling Stones, Faces and the Replacements. Kentucky Knife Fight and Madison King open. 8 p.m.; First Avenue, 701 First Ave. N., Mpls.; $20; 612-332-1775 or first-avenue.com.

— Ross Raihala

Family: Back to the ’50s Weekend

Friday-Sunday: Car lovers get ready for a dream weekend when more than 12,000 street rods, customs, classics and restored vehicles dating from 1964 and earlier take over the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. While the cars are the stars, there are plenty of other things to check out, including an appearance by TV personalities Paul Petersen (“The Donna Reed Show”) and Rick Dore (Discovery Channel’s “Lords of the Car Hoards”); a kids’ area that includes games, music and dancing; a ladies’ showcase with fashion, food, speakers and demos; a Cruise-N-Arts craft fair; a model car contest, a swap meet, a Twin Cities Classic Car Auto Auction and live entertainment. 8 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 6 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday; $10 adults, kids 12 and under are free with each paid adult; 651-641-1992 or msrabacktothe50s.com.

— Amy Carlson Gustafson

Dance: Emily Johnson & Catalyst

Friday-Saturday: Rather than concentrate on a series of short dances like most choreographers, Emily Johnson created a trilogy of evening-length pieces over the course of four years. Inspired by her Alaskan upbringing, she examined the quest for connection and how to balance tradition and modernity and make fish-skin lanterns in “The Thank-You Bar” and “Niicugni.” She and her company, Catalyst, conclude the trilogy with “Shore,” a “celebration of the places where we meet and merge.” The performances at Northrop are but one element, along with a reading, a Saturday morning community cleanup at Minneapolis’ East River Flats Park and a potluck feast Sunday afternoon near Osceola, Wis. 8 p.m.; Northrop Auditorium, 84 Church St. S.E., Mpls.; $20-$10; 612-624-2345 or northrop.umn.edu.

— Rob Hubbard

Classical music: Twin Cities Gay Men’s Chorus

Friday-Saturday: Usually, this chorus’ season-closing concerts are on Pride Weekend (which are next weekend), but with so many events going on then, the chorus decided to launch the week’s festivities with “The Big Gay Sing.” The local queen of silliness, Miss Richfield 1981, is host for a concert that will feature a plethora of empowerment anthems, soaring ballads and full-throated rockers from “Wicked,” “Frozen,” “Hairspray,” Queen, Journey and the Village People. Ben Riggs conducts what should be an especially festive summer songfest. 8 p.m.; Ted Mann Concert Hall, 2128 Fourth St. S., Mpls.; $53-$15; 612-624-2345 or tickets.umn.edu.

— Rob Hubbard

Saturday, June 21

Classical: The Nordic Singers

Saturday: Four soloists from the Royal Opera in Copenhagen, Denmark, have banded together for an American tour, mixing solo arias with duets, trios and quartets, as well as some show tunes and Scandinavian delights. Seeing that the singers have three different countries of origin — Denmark, Sweden and Iceland — it’s understandable that five local cultural organizations are co-sponsoring the concert: The American Swedish Institute, Danish American Center, the Edvard Grieg Society (based at Norway House), the Icelandic American Association of Minnesota and Finlandia Foundation Twin Cities. 7:30 p.m.; Minnehaha Academy Theatre, 3100 W. River Parkway, Mpls.; $25-$10; 612-871-4907 or asimn.org.

— Rob Hubbard

Family: Big Back Yard Mini Golf

Opens Saturday: The Science Museum opens its outdoor mini golf course for the season. EarthScapes Mini Golf offers a lesson in how rain, runoff and rivers change the landscape. Whack your golf balls through sewer pipes, across drainage basins or down a concrete slope molded to look like the eroded gullies of Badlands National Park. The nine-hole course is part of the outdoor exhibit “The Big Back Yard,” a fenced area behind the museum that also includes a prairie maze, a solar-powered house and a garden of edible plants cultivated by indigenous people along the Mississippi River valley. 10:30 a.m.-5 p.m.; Tuesday-Sunday through Labor Day; Science Museum of Minnesota, 120 Kellogg Blvd. W., St Paul; museum admission $13-$10 plus $5 for 9 holes; 651-221-9444 or smm.org.

— Maja Beckstrom

Family: GermanFest

Saturday-Sunday: There will be beer, polka and a whole lot more at what organizers are billing as St. Paul’s first annual GermanFest. Head to the renovated Schmidt Brewery for neighborhood history walks, a presentation on lager, bus tours of German brewery sites, and two stages of live performers, including the Edelweiss Dancers, Brewhaus Polka Kings and others. There also will be World Cup viewing parties, kids’ entertainment and food from the Black Forest Inn and food trucks. Organizers FILO Productions and the Fort Road Federation hope to attract 20,000 people to the inaugural weekend. 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday; 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday; Schmidt Brewery, 882 Seventh St. W., St. Paul; free; germanfestmn.org.

— Maja Beckstrom

Family: Dodge Nature Center Farm Tour

Saturday: Learn where milk comes from in a special tour of Dodge Nature Center’s farm. Families will meet sheep, cows, pigs and chickens and can explore the pasture, barn and hay loft. But the focus will be on dairy animals, and visitors will learn about milking techniques and make butter. 10-11:30 a.m.; Dodge Nature Center, Farm Entrance at 1701 Charlton St., West St. Paul; $3-$1.50; 651-455-4531 or dodgenaturecenter.org.

— Maja Beckstrom

Classical and film: Pixar in Concert

Saturday-Sunday: Music plays a big role in the magic of Pixar films. Four composers have created the scores of Pixar’s 14 features — Randy Newman, Thomas Newman, Michael Giacchino and Patrick Doyle — and they’ve won three Oscars, been nominated for 10 others and picked up 10 Grammys. For these concerts, Sarah Hicks conducts the Minnesota Orchestra in music from such Pixar features as all three “Toy Story” movies, “Finding Nemo,” “Wall-E,” “Up” and “The Incredibles,” while scenes from the films play on a large screen above the stage. Host is Bloomington native Pete Docter, the director of “Monsters, Inc.” and “Up.” 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday; Orchestra Hall, 1111 Nicollet Mall, Mpls.; $70-$21; 612-371-5656 or minnesotaorchestra.org.

— Rob Hubbard

R&B: Bruno Mars

Saturday: Last summer, Honolulu native Bruno Mars made his local arena headlining debut by selling out the Xcel Energy Center and delivering one of the most breezy, enjoyable local pop concerts of the year. In the time since, Mars won his second Grammy Award (best pop vocal album for his sophomore disc “Unorthodox Jukebox”), headlined the Super Bowl halftime show and sold out venues around the world. Expect to see another full house for the 28-year-old’s return engagement/victory lap, which features opener Aloe Blacc (known for his own “The Man” and Avicii’s “Wake Me Up”). 8 p.m.; Xcel Energy Center, 175 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul; $102-$45; 800-745-3000 or xcelenergycenter.com.

— Ross Raihala

Family: Summer Solstice Celebration

Saturday: Celebrate the longest day of the year at the Franconia Sculpture Park where DJ ESP (Woody McBride) will spin tunes and Franconia’s artists-in-residence serve up a barbeque. Explore the 25-acre park and all the large-scale art sculptures scattered throughout the grounds. The following week, on June 28, the park kicks off its Music@Franconia festival at its Earthen Amphitheater. 5 p.m. 29836 St. Croix Trail, Shafer; free, but a $10 donation is suggested for dinner; 651-257-6668 or franconia.org.

— Amy Carlson Gustafson

Rock: Widespread Panic

Saturday: Georgia jam band Widespread Panic headline this outdoor gig, across the border in Somerset, Wis. Likeminded acts Galactic, Conspirator, Pert Near Sandstone and Jerry Joseph are also on the bill for the rain-or-shine show. Formed in 1986, Widespread Panic has built an army of fans with music that touches on progressive and Southern rock, blues and funk. When asked about the “jam band” title, keyboard player John Hermann once said: “I don’t refer to us that way, but it also depends on the song. I look at music as 12 notes, and we use all 12 of them. On some songs, we do jam out a lot. Others we have nice, tight arrangements.” 4 p.m.; Somerset Amphitheater, Somerset, Wis.; $60-$25; 877-987-6487 or somersetamphitheater.com.

— Ross Raihala

Blues: Jonny Lang

Saturday: Now 33, guitar prodigy Jonny Lang emerged from Fargo, N.D., when he was still a tween. He relocated to Minneapolis in the mid-’90s and signed a deal with A&M Records when Lang was all of 15. Lang ended up recording four albums for A&M, wrapping up his deal with 2006’s “Turn Around,” his first foray into gospel music. After that, Lang took an extended break from recording to raise his family — he has four children with wife Haylie Johnson — and returned to action last year with “Fight for My Soul,” his first new studio album in seven years. Soul singer Jonny P opens. 7 p.m.; Weesner Family Amphitheatre, Minnesota Zoo, 13000 Zoo Blvd., Apple Valley; $77.50-$65; 800-514-3849 or suemclean.com/zoo.

— Ross Raihala

Rock: Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Saturday: In the late ’00s, iconic Australian singer/songwriter Nick Cave formed the noisy garage rock band Grinderman, saying at the time it was a way to “escape the weight” of his longtime backing band, the Bad Seeds. After a pair of albums, Cave put Grinderman to rest and reunited the Bad Seeds to record last year’s “Push Away the Sky” (his wife, Susie Bick, appears naked on the cover art). The current Bad Seeds lineup features the return of Barry Adamson, who left the group in 1986, but not fellow founding member Mick Harvey, who departed the lineup in 2009, apparently for good. 8 p.m.; State Theatre, 805 Hennepin Ave. S., Mpls.; sold out; 800-982-2787 or hennepintheatretrust.org.

— Ross Raihala

Sunday, June 22

Rock: Los Lobos

Sunday: Frequent Minnesota Zoo performers Los Lobos haven’t released a new studio album since 2010’s “Tin Can Trust,” but they have kept fans happy with other projects. In 2012, they celebrated the 20th anniversary of their acclaimed album “Kiko” with an expanded CD and a concert DVD recorded in 2006. Last year, Los Lobos marked four decades in the business with a new live record, “Disconnected in New York City,” also available as a deluxe CD/DVD package. “American Idol” vet Crystal Bowersox opens. 7 p.m.; Weesner Family Amphitheatre, Minnesota Zoo, 13000 Zoo Blvd., Apple Valley; $57.50-$45; 800-514-3849 or suemclean.com/zoo.

— Ross Raihala

Jazz: James Carter Organ Trio

Sunday: Looking for a fresh concept for his next CD, saxophone vituoso James Carter decided to revisit the music of the great Gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt. On his CD “Chasin’ the Gypsy,” Carter and his Detroit-based trio reinterprets classic Reinhardt tunes, such as the familiar “Nauges,” which Carter plays on bass sax. Other members of Carter’s funky groove machine are Hammond organist Gerard Gibbs and veteran drummer Leonard King. 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., Dakota Jazz Club and Restaurant, 1010 Nicollet Ave., Mpls.; $32-$22; 612-332-1010 or dakotacooks.com.

— Dan Emerson

Family: Brazilian Festa de Sao Joao

Sunday: Dance to a nine-piece Brazilian band, Beira Mar Brasil, and take some forro dance lessons as Roseville’s Central Park hosts its version of Northeastern Brazil’s big Festa de Sao Joao. The family friendly dance and music party includes capoeria martial arts performances with Omulu Capoeira of Minnesota and drumming from Batucada do Norte. 4-8 p.m.; Frank Rog Amphitheatre, Central Park, 2540 Lexington Avenue N., Roseville; free; 651-792-7006 or cityofroseville.com/liverog.

— Maja Beckstrom

Family: Minnesota Sinfonia

Sunday: The Minnesota Sinfonia brings its summer family outdoor pops concert to Eagan with selections from familiar waltzes, Scott Joplin, Broadway tunes and classics by Mozart. This is light summer fare, perfect for a family picnic. The orchestra might even play “Let it Go” from Disney’s “Frozen.” The Sinfonia is a professional orchestra that plays free concerts in a variety of settings. 6:30 p.m.; Caponi Art Park, 1220 Diffley Road, Eagan; $5 suggested donation; 651-454-9412 or caponiartpark.org.

— Maja Beckstrom

Jazz: Ella Fitzgerald — Best of the Song Books

Sunday: One of the top pianists in jazz, New York-based Jon Weber, is collaborating with Twin Cities vocal talent Connie Evingson to honor one of the departed greats of jazz vocalese, the late Ella Fitzgerald. Evingson and Weber have done occasional joint concerts togethe since they met on a European cruise for Garrison Keillor’s “Prairie Home Companion.” As part of the Jungle Theater’s ongoing “Jazz at the Jungle” series, the duo will revisit a number of tunes from Fitzgerald’s storied past. 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., the Jungle Theater, 2951 Lyndale Ave. S., Mpls.; $25; 612-822-7063 or jungletheater.com.

— Dan Emerson

Pop: The Fray

Sunday: Denver foursome the Fray looked like another flash in the pan when they emerged almost a decade ago with their triple-platinum debut single, “Over My Head (Cable Car).” But they immediately followed it up with another big seller, “How to Save a Life,” which opened the doors for a steady stream of light-rock hits: “You Found Me,” “Never Say Never,” “Syndicate,” “Heartbeat” and “Love Don’t Die.” Piano-based Seattle trio Barcelona and new Brooklyn duo Oh Honey open. 7:30 p.m.; Myth, 3090 Southlawn Drive, Maplewood; $49; 651-779-6984 or mythlive.com.

— Ross Raihala

As you comment, please be respectful of other commenters and other viewpoints. Our goal with article comments is to provide a space for civil, informative and constructive conversations. We reserve the right to remove any comment we deem to be defamatory, rude, insulting to others, hateful, off-topic or reckless to the community. See our full terms of use here.

More in Things to Do

Throughout the Palace Theatre's first year, plenty of fans have stopped former Mayor Chris Coleman to chat about the onetime vaudeville house that's been transformed into a music venue. They have good things to say.

Danai Gurira kicks butt as Okoye in the hit movie “Black Panther,” but her prowess as a playwright is even more impressive. Inspired by her own immigrant family, the play “Familiar” at the Guthrie Theater is as powerful as a thrust from Okoye’s spear. RELATED: Women of 'Black Panther' take center stage Of course, given the endless arguments over immigration...

First of all, you don't want to go to this exhibit in your stocking feet. It's not sanitary, of course, but also because there are just too many of those little plastic blocks for unprotected feet to navigate without nervousness. The Science Museum of Minnesota's newest visiting exhibition, "Towers of Tomorrow with Lego Bricks," has more than 700,000 Lego pieces...

Cherry blossom festivals, tulip time and lilac season is nearly upon us. Here’s a look at some of the places that celebrate spring flowers with festivals and other events. TULIP TIME You could go to the Netherlands to see the Keukenhof gardens in Lisse, which are planted with 7 million flowering bulbs — tulips, daffodils, hyacinths and more — blooming...

In the midst of its mission to educate and inspire young audiences, Minneapolis’ Children’s Theatre Company periodically pauses to deliver a show that seems to have no higher calling than just getting the little kids to giggle. “Corduroy” is such a show. Yes, it’s built upon Don Freeman’s popular picture book about a teddy bear wreaking havoc in a department...

World Storytelling Day events take place on or around March 20 in 25 countries. And in St. Paul, storytellers will be slinging tales Tuesday, March 20, for adults and Saturday, March 24, for children at Landmark Center. The event, which has taken place since 2003, isn't all "once upon a time." A global theme is chosen to complement the ideas behind...